Startup profile · funding coverage
Science Exchange funding, valuation and investors
Life-sciences procurement marketplace for outsourced R&D services.
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Funding, valuation & investors
Answer-first snapshotLatest funding
Seed
$1.5M · December 2011
Latest known valuation
Not publicly disclosed
Total disclosed equity funding
$1.5M
Excludes debt, grants, acquisitions, secondaries, and IPO proceeds.
Current status
acquired
acquired · Palo Alto, California
Investors in latest funding
Lead: Andreessen Horowitz
Latest tracked event: Acquisition (September 2024). It is shown separately because it is not counted as disclosed equity funding.
Overview
Science Exchange operated an online marketplace and procurement platform connecting biopharma and research organizations with CROs, CMOs, and specialized service providers for outsourced experiments and manufacturing. Founded in 2011 in Palo Alto, the company streamlined RFP workflows, vendor qualification, and spend analytics for life-sciences R&D teams. a16z led a $1.5M seed in 2011; Norwest Venture Partners participated in later rounds. Waud Capital Partners acquired Science Exchange in September 2024.
Why Science Exchange is interesting
Science Exchange digitized pharma outsourcing workflows — a16z seed backer before Norwest led later rounds and Waud Capital acquired the company in 2024.
Product & use cases
Science Exchange's platform let pharma and biotech teams source, compare, and manage outsourced lab services — from preclinical studies to analytical testing — with procurement controls and vendor analytics.
- Outsource preclinical and analytical lab work
- Compare CRO quotes and manage RFP workflows
- Track R&D outsourcing spend across teams
- Qualify and audit external service providers
Key facts
- Acquired by Waud Capital Partners (Sep 2024) — company press
- Seed (Dec 2011): $1.5M led by a16z — TechCrunch
- Norwest Venture Partners among later institutional backers
- Marketplace for biopharma outsourced R&D services
Funding history (newest first)
Acquisition
2024-09- Waud Capital Partners (lead)
Source: https://www.scienceexchange.com/press/waud-capital-partners-acquires-science-exchange-to-fuel
Investors in our directory
Funds linked from Science Exchange's profile — open a fund page for stage focus and related deal articles.
Competitive landscape
Edge: Early mover in digitizing life-sciences outsourcing procurement — network of qualified vendors plus enterprise workflow tools.
Life-sciences outsourcing is huge but relationship-driven. Science Exchange competed with Scientist.com to become the default procurement layer. Waud Capital's 2024 acquisition suggests PE roll-up strategy in biotech services software.
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Scientist.com direct
Competing R&D outsourcing marketplace for pharma.
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Internal procurement teams alternative
Manual RFP and vendor management without marketplace layer.
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CRO direct relationships incumbent
Large pharma often contracts major CROs directly, bypassing marketplaces.
Notable stories
- Science Exchange was pitched as an 'eBay for science' in 2011 — a16z seed bet on digitizing the fragmented CRO procurement market.
- The 2024 Waud Capital acquisition moved the company from venture-backed independent to PE-owned, common for vertical SaaS in life sciences.
Industries
FAQs about Science Exchange
Practical answers founders, operators, and investors typically search for.
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